The present invention relates to carbon black for compounding into a tire tread rubber, and more particularly to carbon black for compounding into a tire tread rubber which can impart good abrasion resistance and grip performance to a rubber component.
The high-speed and stable travel performances of tires have recently been increasingly required in keeping with development of high-performance automobiles. Under such a circumstance, active investigations are underway with a view to improving the performance of tire tread portions. A particularly urgent need is to develop a tire tread having such a high abrasion resistance as to withstand high-speed stable travel and such a high grip performance as to provide a large road-gripping force.
The effect of reinforcing a rubber by carbon black has heretofore been considered to be largely governed by the specific surface area (particle size) and structure of carbon black. In general, it is known that the larger the specific surface area and structure of carbon black, the higher the abrasion resistance of a rubber containing the carbon black compounded therein.
As for improving the grip performance of a tire tread, there have been proposed a method wherein SBR having a high styrene content is used as a rubber component of a tread portion, and a method wherein a large amount of process oil is incorporated into the rubber component of a tread portion. However, the use of such styrene-rich SBR or process oil can hardly improve the grip performance to a satisfactory degree and presents a problem of notable lowering in the abrasion resistance.